She snorted and turned away from the computer to get up and walk into the living room. Could she even call it a relationship? Not really. They were partners in solving this case, that was all. And with the baby, of course.
Absently, she placed her hand over her tummy and sank down onto the sofa to stare around at all the unfinished baby items around her that they’d brought over from her place. There was the crib, the highchair, the playpen, even the mobile she’d bought. All just sitting there in pieces waiting to be assembled into what she hoped would be working order. She’d hoped to have more time to get it all together, but time was quickly running out.
And if that wasn’t a metaphor for her life presently, she didn’t know what was.
Olive took a deep breath and let her head fall back on the cushions to stare up at the ceiling. Her parents were right. She and Levon needed to hash this out, once and for all. It was scary, yes. Not just because she loved him, but also because she wanted to do the right thing for their baby. But the scariest thing of all for Olive was not knowing.
They had been lab partners once. Bed partners too.
But could they be a forever family?
16
Levon returned home that afternoon feeling like he had a belly full of cut glass. After going over the footage with the local PD and Principal James, he was left with the awful task of telling Olive the truth about her favorite student. That Franklin Monroe was, in fact, working with the Reapers. Then there was the fact that after the trashing of her classroom and the threatening note the gang had left behind, both the PD and Principal James had agreed that Olive needed to be put on an immediate leave of absence for her own safety until after this whole mess was resolved.
He hated that he’d been right about this. It was almost enough to make him long for his academic days, back when he had been wrong so often. He hesitated on the porch of the rental house, exhausted down to his very bones. He knew telling her was the right thing, but it was hard. Harder than pretty much anything Levon had done so far in his life, and that was saying something. He’d faced down dictators and homicidal militias, but seeing Olive Owen hurt and disappointed might just kill him.
Given her condition, he’d have to break the news on both counts to her gently, but he’d have to be clear. Levon was determined to resolve the case as quickly as possible, but he still needed to be thorough and that would take time. Olive would have to remain here at the rental house, and under his protection, until the Reaper presence was permanently eradicated from Harper’s Forge.
Dammit. Levon tried to rehearse the words in his head, but they kept getting muddled. He screwed his eyes shut in concentration, taking deep breaths to calm his pounding pulse, but nothing seemed to help. Finally, there was nothing for it but to get it done.
He unlocked the front door and stepped inside to find Olive sitting in the armchair by the windows in the living room, reading one of her scientific journals. She glanced up when he entered and immediately set it aside, taking off her glasses. Levon just stared at her a second, drinking in the vision of her soft, lovely face. Her russet-colored curls were pulled back in a ponytail, but a few waves had sprung free to kiss her cheekbone and jawline.
If leaving meant coming home to a vision like this, then Levon found he didn’t quite resent getting called away on mission business.
“Well?” Olive was clearly eager to hear what he had to say, if the restless wringing of her hands and bobbing of her foot were any indications. She sat up straighter, her dark eyes shining with intelligence and interest. “What happened with the police?”
“Uh…” He raked a hand through his hair, stalling. He walked over to the sofa across from her and sat. “I showed them the note that was left in the classroom. And some security footage from the school.” He leaned forward, staring at his hands hanging loosely between his parted knees, his forearms resting on his thighs. “I got some other footage from my team in Arlington too. Video from the mall arcade where we did the stakeout the other day.”
“Really?” Olive’s tone trembled with excitement. “Did it show anything? Could you see the faces of the people responsible?”
“Yeah, we could.”
“And?” she pressed. He said nothing—forgetting already the speech he’d rehearsed on the porch, his words getting all jumbled and wrong. Fuck. He looked up at her in time to see her eager expression slowly dissolve into resigned understanding. “Oh, God. It’s one of my students, isn’t it?”
Levon gave a reluctant nod. “But don’t worry. I called Principal James into my meeting with the PD and we’ve got your situation—”
“My situation? I don’t have a situation.”
“Yes, you do. Because of the violence of the attack on your classroom and your proximity to the suspect, we can’t allow you to go back to school.” Levon avoided defining who ‘we’ was, at least for now. He knew he had plenty of backup in his decision, but he also knew he had to take all of the responsibility for it. “Not after what happened. Not until the people responsible are behind bars.”
“I know my kids. They would never hurt me.” She looked away, scowling. “Please, Levon, whoever it was, they must have been put up to it—”
“We don’t know that. Not yet. That’s why you have to stay away from the school until we figure this out.” This was not how he had wanted to tell her. Not at all. “I know you care about those kids, but—”
“I love my students!” She looked back at him and he wished she hadn’t. The pain in he
r eyes nearly gutted him. “What about my tutoring? Franklin has his scholarship paperwork due. He’s the smartest kid I’ve ever taught, and he’s so high-risk, given his home life and family situation and—”
“You’re right. Franklin is high-risk, but not in the way you think.” Levon cursed under his breath and pushed to his feet, too restless to sit. He hated this. Hated that this kid Olive had trusted wasn’t worthy of her faith in him. Hated that she was disappointed and hurt. Hated most of all that Franklin had made the mistake of threatening the woman Levon loved and the mother of his child, because now Levon was going to have to do something about that. He wasn’t a violent man at his core, but the thought of Franklin and the Reapers going unpunished made his muscles twitch with the need for revenge. If he didn’t keep control, he was likely to storm out into the gathering darkness and resolve this all. Personally. Tonight. Without any of the proper protocols and channels. Screw SSoF. Screw the Harper’s Forge PD. Screw everything except protecting Olive and the baby. “It was Franklin. He is the one who trashed your classroom. His face is all over the security footage. There’s more video of him selling drugs at the arcade for the Reapers.” His attempt to cool himself down before delivering this news failed. It felt like he'd pop a vessel from the blood pounding in his ears and the heat scorching his face. “The proof is undeniable. It was him. Once they test that note, I’m sure they’ll find his fingerprints all over it too.”
All the color drained from Olive’s complexion, leaving her white as a ghost. For a sickening moment he worried that she might pass out on him and he rushed to her side, only to be stalled by the hand she held up to keep him away. Bile burned the back of his throat before he swallowed hard to keep it at bay. He’d wanted so much to get this right, but as usual when it came to words, he’d apparently gotten it all wrong. Again.
If only he could rewind this moment, reorder his thoughts, and start again—
“Franklin?” Her voice croaked out, rough with sadness and betrayal, and her shoulders caved forward, like all the fight had gone out of her. He wanted to hold her, wanted to tell her that it would all be okay, somehow. But she kept him at a distance, with one harrowing glance. “How? Why?”
“My guess is he thought he was protecting you. Trying to scare you off so you wouldn’t keep looking into the gang and their activities.” Levon still had no evidence to back up his theory, only an instinct. But his instincts had never failed him before. Please, God, don’t let them be wrong now. He wasn’t sure how much more Olive could take. She was already under enough stress with the pregnancy and the impending birth.